Apparatus for proportioning dry material and liquids



June 12, 1956 P. A. COFFMAN, JR 2,750,073

APPARATUS FOR PROPORTIONING DRY MATERIAL AND LIQUIDS Filed Sept. 17, 1952 i 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN VEN TOR.

A T TO RNEYS- June 12, 1956 P. A. COFFMAN, JR 2,750,073

APPARATUS FOR PROPORTIONING DRY MATERIAL AND LIQUIDS Filed Sept. 17, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 am as IN V EN TOR. Baa/fl fio/fiwaw, J}.

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United States Patent APPARATUS FOR PROPDRTIONING DRY MATERIAL AND LIQUIDS Paul A. Cotfman, Jr., Warwick, R. I., assignor, by mesne assignments, to B-I-F Industries, Inc., a corporation of Rhode Island This invention is for a machine or apparatus for feeding powdery material into a flowing liquid.

An object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of the above character in which the powdered material is positively fed into a flowing liquid in an amount which is proportional to the quantity of the flow of said liquid.

Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of the above character which is operable to vary the feed of a powdered material into a flowing liquid to vary the proportion to said liquid.

Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of the above character in which the dry material will be transmitted from the feeder to the flow line by a differential pressure condition existing in the liquid conduit.

Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of the above character in which the dry material will be discharged into a conduit to be transmitted into the flow of liquid and the walls of said conduit shall be wetted to aid in conveying said powdered material into the flow of liquid.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists of certain novel features of construction as will be more fully described and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of an apparatus embodying one form of the invention;

Figure 2 is an end view of the apparatus illustrated in Figure 1 looking toward the same from the left-hand side thereof as seen in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a section view taken along lines 3--3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken substantially along lines 44 of Figure 2 looking in the direction of the arrows thereon;

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken substantially along lines 5-5 of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a sectional view taken substantially along lines 66 of Figure 4 illustrating the position of the feeder plate relative to the walls of the feeder mechanism;

Figure 7 is a side elevational view of a fragmental portion of a modified form of apparatus; and

Figure 8 is a side elevational view of a fragmental portion of a different modified form of the apparatus.

The invention in general comprises positively feeding a powdered material proportional to the quantity of a flowing liquid with which the powder is to be combined. I accomplish this by employing a suitable powder feeding mechanism which may be driven or otherwise operated directly in time with a metering instrument employed for measuring the quantity of the flow of the liquid so that any variation in the quantity of liqiud flow at any instant of operation will likewise cause a proportional variation in the feed of the powder. The metering instrument may be a flow meter of any suitable manufacture adapted to measure the quantity of the ice flow of the particular liquid to which the powder material is to be added. As by way of example, I have found the Granco gasoline meter suitable for use when the liquid is gasoline. In other instances a propeller flow meter will be found satisfactory when the liquid is water. The powder material is discharged from the feeder into a conduit which may be in the form of a receptacle so connected to the flow of liquid that a pressure differential condition will exist between the flow of liquid and the receptacle to draw into the liquid How the powder received in said conduit or receptacle. For this purpose I have found a standard type ejector having a suction chamber to which the discharge end of the powder receptacle may be connected is satisfactory. By this arrangement only the required quantity of the powder in any instant of operation is discharged into the receptacle, thus preventing any plugging of the discharge orifice of the receptacle due to packing of the powder material or the contamination thereof by the liquid.

In Figures 1-6, inclusive, I have shown one form of the apparatus designated generally 10 particularly suitable for feeding napalm and gasoline or other similar materials to be combined and comprises a meter 11 having an inlet 12 for the liquid and a discharge conduit 13. At one end of the conduit 13 there is attached a hydraulic ejector device 14 which may be of a standard type of any suitable manufacture having a nozzle 15 (see Figure 4) through which the liquid passes to be discharged into a suction chamber 16 and passed out thereof through conduit 17, which may be externally threaded to receive some fastening device whereby a further conduit, not shown, may be attached to convey the mixture to some desired location or receptacle.

The meter 11 may be of any suitable manufacture, preferably of a constant displacement type suitable for measuring the quantity of the flow of liquid passing therethrough. The meter shown has a vertically disposed shaft 18 which is suitably journaled in bearings 19 and through suitable gearings 2t), auxiliary shaft 21, and gearings 22 transfers the motion of the meter to a counter indicated generally 23 whereby the quantity of the flow of liquid through the meter 11 may be indicated at any instant of operation. The counter may be of any suitable manufacture and of the reset type whereby the same may be reset for each individual run of mixture.

The powder feeding mechanism designated generally 25 is of the rotary type having a circular disc 26 having a hub 27 from which ribs 28 (see Figure 6) radiate to the outer edge wall 29 of the disc. The hub 27 is centrally bored as at 30 to receive a shaft 31 which may be attached thereto in any suitable manner such as by a screw 32. The shaft 31 projects beneath the disc 26 and is journaled in a bearing 33 provided in the Wall 34 of the base 35 of the apparatus. On the lower end portion of the shaft 31 there is provided a sprocket gear 36. A sprocket chain 37 is trained over gear 36, and a sprocket gear 38 is fixed to the said shaft 18. Thus the disc 26 is rotated through the meter 11 in direct proportion, and the rate of rotation of the disc 26 may be determined by a choice of gears 3638.

A feeder mechanism 40 having a top wall 41 provided with an opening 42 therethrough and side walls 43 is mounted on the base 35 at a location above the disc 26 and is fixed in position in any suitable manner as by means of fastenings 44. The side walls 43 depend from the wall 41 in a spiral formation (see Figure 6) with the lower edge thereof just inwardly of the edge of the disc 26, thus providing with the disc 26 a powder-receiving chamber designated generally 45 having a rotatable bottom wall formed by the disc 26. The ends of the wall 43 are spaced from each other as seen in Figure 6 providing a discharge opening or outlet 46 for the passage of powder from the chamber 45. Powder material is supplied to the chamber by means of a hopper 3-7 having a base plate 48 of a size to extend about the opening 42 and there secured in position as by means of cap screws 49. Spaced members 50 are positioned between the plate 48 and the wall 41 providing a recess in which is slidably received a gate valve 51 (see Fig. 3) to control the passage of powder from the hopper into the chamber 45. The gate 51 is of a sim" ple construction in the form of a plate having an opening 52, which when moved into register with the opening 42, opens the hopper to the passage of powder therefrom, and when the opening 52 is moved out of register with the said opening 42, the plate provides a closure 52' for the bottom opening .of the hopper 47.

A conduit 53 is provided in the base 35 at a location to be beneath and in line with the outlet 46 to receive the powder discharged from the chamber 45. It will now be apparent that upon rotation of the disc 26, the powder material with which the chamber 44 is filled upon the opening of the gate 51, will be moved out of the chamber 45 through the outlet 46 because of the spiral form of the walls 43 and the friction of the plate on the powder thereon. in order to control and predetermine the quan tity or amount of powder discharged or fed out of chamber 45 for each revolution of the disc 26, a gate valve 54 is provided.

This valve 54 in the present disclosure is in the form of a plate 55 extending through a suitable opening 56 in the wall 41 at a location thereon for the plate 55 to be adjacent to the outlet 46 (see Figure 4). The upper portion of the plate 55 is angularly disposed as at 57 and apertured to pass over a threaded member 58 which is secured to the wall 41 to project vertically above the same. Knurled nuts 59-60 are received on the member 58, and the portion 57 of plate 55 projects between these nuts 5960 by means of which the plate 55 may be lowered or elevated in the chamber i5 in an obvious manner whereby to adjust the depth at which the said plate will extend into the chamber 45. Thus the quantity of powder moved out of chamber 45 for each revolution of the disc 26 may be predetermined. Thus the chamber 45 is provided with an outlet, the size of the opening of which may be adjustably controlled.

The conduit 53 is extended by a receptacle having a vortex chamber 66. The upper end of said receptacle 65 may be attached to the base 35 about the conduit 53 as by means of clamp fastenings 67 (see Figures 1 and 2) and the lower end thereof attached to the inlet of the suction chamber 16 of the ejector 14. The said inlet of said ejector in the instant disclosure is externally threaded as at 68 to receive the internally threaded lower end portion 69 of the said receptacle 65. In order to provide for a vortex in said chamber 66, liquid is taken from the upstream side of the liquid flow as at 70 and through pipe 71 attached to the wall portion 72 of the receptacle 65 as at 73 (Fig. 5) so that liquid under pressure from the upstream side of the ejector 14 will discharge into the chamber 65 tangentially to the inner side of the wall of the chamber to cause the liquid to swirl therein and form the vortex to entrain the powder as received in the chamber 66 to be drawn out thereof by the negative pressure condition formed on the suction side of the ejector 14.

It may be found desirable to provide a control for the conduit 53 and to this end a butterfly type valve 74 (see Figure 4) has a shaft 75 which extends through a wall of the base 35 and is provided with a handle 76 for manually closing or opening said valve 74. An overflow discharge conduit 77 opcning into the conduit 53 is provided for the escape of liquid mixture in the event that the ejector device 14 or the main discharge line becomes clogged.

It is desirable that the quantity of the flow of the liquid be determined prior to the addition of powder thereto,

and to this end a clutch mechanism is interposed between the shaft 31 and the sprocket gear 36 whereby the disc 26 may be held stationary until such time as it is desirable for the powder to be fed from the feeder 25. The clutch may be of any suitable construction, that illustrated in Figure 1 being shown only generally as by way of example and which may have one part 80 thereof connected to rotate with the shaft 31 and a part 8]. attached to the sprocket gear 36. A fork lever 82 engages in a groove of the part 80. This lever 32 is rockably mounted on a shaft 83 which projects outwardly of the base 35 and has attached thereon a handle 84 whereby said lever 82 may be rocked to manually move said clutch parts in and out of engagement with each other in a well-known manner.

in Figure 7 l have shown an alternate form of apparatus wherein the liquid may be water to be treated with a powder material. In such instances an existing ilow meter in the water line to be treated may be employed for driving the feeder mechanism as by means of a flexi ble drive 85 extending to a suitable gearing arrangement, not shown, to connect with the feed disc 26 of the apparatus. in such instances it may also be desirable that only a part of the flow of said water line be utilized for receiving the powder, and this may be accomplished by means of a conduit 36 tapped into the main line at a suitable location, not shown, the conduit 86 being attached to the ejector 14 in an obvious manner. The remaining parts or portions of the apparatus are the same as those above described with the exception of the said means of transmitting motion from the water material and in providing a conduit 36 for diverting a portion of the [low of the water to the apparatus. A conduit, not shown, may be attached to the discharge end of the ejector 14 to conduct the treated water back into the main flow line to mix therewith.

In Figure 8 I have shown another alternate form of apparatus in which I substitute for the vortex chamber 66 a funnel-like conduit 87. Also in this disclosure 1 substitute for the ejector 14 a Venturi tube which is attached to the outlet 13 of the meter 11. The discharge end of receptacle S7 is attached to the throat portion of the Venturi tube, thereby causing a differential pressure condition between the receptacle 87 and the flow of liquid through the Venturi tube. Thus powder delivered into the receptacle 87 will be drawn into the flow of liquid through the said differential pressure existing between the said Venturi and the receptacle 87, this receptacle in effect being a continuation of the conduit 53. In this alternate form shown in Figure 8, it will be apparent that powder received in the receptacle 87 will be only in the amounts proportional to the flow of said liquid, and there will be less tendency of clogging of the opening into the Venturi throat, which otherwise would occur should the powder supply be connected directly to the Venturi tube.

It will now be apparent that I have disclosed an apparatus whereby a material in powder form may be successfully fed continuously at any instant of operation proportional to the quantity of the flow of liquid at the said instant of operation, and it will also be apparent that the apparatus is flexible in that its principle of operation may be adapted for use in various installments wherein a powder or dry material is to be fed proportional to the flow of a liquid with which the powder is to be combined.

1 claim:

1. A machine for feeding a powder into a flow of liquid comprising a conduit for the liquid, a meter through which said flow of liquid passes for measuring the quantity of the said flow through said conduit, :1 powder feeding means for delivering powder therefrom, means for operatively connecting said powder feeding means and said meter for delivering the powder in a quantity proportional to the quantity of the fiow of liquid, and means intersecting said conduit for receiving and conveying said powder into the said flow of liquid and means for reducing the pressure of the liquid at said intersection to draw said powder into the flow as delivered from said feeding means.

2. A machine for feeding a powder material into a flow of liquid comprising a conduit for the liquid, a constant displacement meter for measuring the quantity of the liquid flowing through said conduit, a powder feeder, means connecting said meter to said feeder for transmitting motion to said feeder for operating the same for delivering a continuous quantity of powder proportional to the quantity of the flow of the liquid, a vortex chamber intersecting said conduit and positioned to receive the discharge from said feeder for receiving said powder as delivered from said feeder, and a hydraulic ejector in the conduit connected on the reduced pressure side of the flow to said chamber for drawing into said flow line the powder received therein.

3. A machine for feeding a powder into a flow line of liquid comprising a conduit for the liquid, a meter operable for measuring the quantity of the flow of the liquid flowing through said conduit and having a shaft rotated by the liquid passing through the meter, a supply for the powder material, a feeder connected to said supply and operable from said meter shaft for delivering a quantity of powder from said supply proportional to the quantity of the flow of said liquid, a receptacle having a discharge intersecting said conduit and positioned to receive the discharge from said feeder for receiving the powder as delivered from said feeder, and means in said conduit adjacent said receptacle for creating a reduced pressure in said flow at the discharge of said receptacle for drawing into said flow the powder received in said receptacle.

4. A machine as set forth in claim 3 wherein said receptacle is a vortex chamber.

5. A machine as set forth in claim 3 wherein said receptacle is a vortex chamber connected to the upstream side of said flow line and the outlet thereof is connected 6 to the downstream side of said flow line whereby a flow of said stream into said chamber will cause a vortex in said chamber to entrain the powder received therein and the downstream side of said flow will cause a reduced pressure in said receptacle to draw into said flow the powder entrained in the liquid received in said chamber.

6. In a machine for feeding powder into a flow of liquid, a conduit for the liquid, a meter for the liquid flowing through said conduit, a feeder for the powder comprising a disc rotatable by said meter, 21 wall above said disc presenting a surface extending generally parallel to the axis of the disc spirally arranged to provide an increasing radial distance from the axis of said disc in the direction of rotation of said disc and terminating in a discharge opening, means for delivering a quantity of powder on to said disc. within said well to be moved through an ever increasing space to said discharge opening and means to convey the powder into said conduit to mix with the liquid flowing therethrough.

7. In a machine as in claim 6 wherein there is a plate adjacent said discharge opening to control the amount of material passing through the discharge opening.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 718,504 Needham Jan. 13, 1903 1,243,631 Ropp Oct. 16, 1917 1,390,271 Booth Sept. 13, 1921 2,330,164 Wiedenhoefer Sept. 21, 1943 2,626,482 Munday et a1 Jan. 27, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 320,710 Great Britain Oct. 24, 1929 OTHER REFERENCES Publication: Booth Chemical Co., Townley, N. 1., published 1922. 

